Pakistan seek batting form in South Africa tour opener

Pakistan's batsmen will seek form when they open their tour of South Africa with a three-day match against a South African Invitation XI at Willowmoore Park in Benoni Wednesday.

It is the only game for the tourists before the first of three Tests starts in Centurion on December 26.

Pakistan twice suffered fourth-innings batting collapses in losing a recent Test series against New Zealand in the United Arab Emirates.

Both captain Sarfraz Ahmed and coach Mickey Arthur acknowledged on arrival in South Africa that posting competitive totals was crucial if they are to match the hosts in what is shaping as a battle between two teams with strong bowling attacks.

With the warm-up match clashing with the resumption of South Africa's four-day franchise competition, the Invitation XI is drawn from the country's second-tier provincial competition.

The opposition is unlikely to be especially challenging, but it is an opportunity for the Pakistanis to get used to local conditions at a ground just 60 kilometres (37 miles) from the venue for the first Test.

Arthur, who coached South Africa from 2005 until 2010, told journalists he believed his young batsmen will cope better with conditions in South Africa than the low, slow pitches of the UAE.

"There are some very talented young batsmen there. They don't stand on leg stump anymore. Our batsmen get to off stump, they cover the bounce, they cover the pace and they cover the swing."
Test squad
Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (capt/wkt), Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Yasir Shah Fixtures
December 19-21: SA Invitation XI, Benoni 26-30: First Test, Centurion
January 3-7: Second Test, Cape Town 11-15: Third Test, Johannesburg 19: First ODI, Port Elizabeth 22: Second ODI, Durban 25: Third ODI, Centurion 27: Fourth ODI, Johannesburg 30: Fifth ODI, Cape Town